Prelude in Db majorThe Preludes by ChopinWritten: Between 1835 and 1835Published: 1839Structure:The piece is loosely in ternary form, and falls into 3 unbalanced sections.Section A is 27 bars long and is in the key of Db major. Section B is 47 bars longand in the tonic major of C# major. Section A is repeated, for a mere 6 bars andthen the codetta ends the piece in Db major and lasts for 8 bars. Section A hasa light and dreamy feel to it and is decorated with ornaments. Section Bsounds darker and more depressing. The raindrop sound is made by continuallyrepeating the G#.Instrumentation:The piece is written for a solo piano. Chopin uses careful use of the pedals, andthe sustaining pedal is used expressively. The piece is played cantabile andlegato with the use of rubato playing.Harmony:The main chords used are the tonic Db and the dominant C#. They are heard inroot positions as well as first and second inversion. Chopin frequently useschords V7 at cadences. Chopin includes chromatic chords to add more colourand expression to the piece, which is a feature of the romantic period.Tonality:Section A starts off with the notes F, Db and Ab descending, which is the chordof Db major. The right hand plays the melody here, while the left hand plays abroken chord of Db major. The markings for this piece are sostenuto and piano.The pedal note used throughout the piece is Ab dominant. The decorationacciaccatura is used. Within the section A, a new second theme is added, thistime ascending, with some chromatic notes. At the end the Ab becomeswritten as G#, and enharmonic change. This leads the piece into section B.Section B is in the key of C#. It is played on the lower region of the piano with awide range of dynamics used. The melody is mainly in the left hand now with aG# pedal note in the right hand. This is called an inverted dominant pedal.Texture:

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The texture of section A is melody dominated homophony, and the texture ofsection B is a homophonic texture throughout.Melody:Section A is made up of mainly 4 bar phrases. Overall section A has the phrasestructure of ABA (ternary form). Phrase A begins with a falling arpeggio of Dbmajor, followed by an ascending stepwise movements before descending backto the tonic. Phrase B starts ascending in steps before descending in quavers.There are some grace notes to decorate the piece.…read more